E-commerce continues to thrive amid pandemic

To bolster consumption during the pandemic, supermarkets and cafés have offered take-out and pushed ahead with online shopping via social networks like Facebook and Zalo and their own websites.

Online customers of Co.opmart Ha Dong, for instance, were 20%-25% higher in number compared to January last year. The Big C supermarket chain rolled out promotions for online shoppers and offered free delivery for purchases of VND200,000 or more. Upon its launch, bookings via telephone surged 200% year-on-year. VinMart also introduced an online shopping feature in its VinID app.

As of February 17, revenues of companies and retailers in Hanoi had risen 7%-10% compared to the previous Lunar New Year (Tet) holiday, according to the city’s Department of Industry and Trade.

Online shopping turnover increased 20%-25% and made up 5%-7% of sales. The number of customers using online payments also went up, by about 15% compared to the same period last year. Order numbers on some e-commerce platforms rose remarkably as Tet approached.

Tiki, in particular, recorded a year-on-year surge of 50% in transaction numbers in January. Necessities such as rice, dried food, canned food, and powdered milk also debuted on e-commerce platforms, a move that helps consumers avoid going to crowded places.

For their part, retailers have stepped up telephone bookings and delivery and boosted inventories by 30%-40% compared to normal.

The expansion of e-commerce platforms is part of a scenario proposed by the MoIT in response to the pandemic, said Dang Hoang Hai, Director General of the ministry’s Vietnam e-Commerce and Digital Economy Agency. The ministry has also partnered with logistics and e-commerce platforms to hasten the shipment of orders to support consumers, he added.